''There is something about wanting to pass things on,'' he said. The couple created the Suzanne Roberts Theatre at 480 S. Broad St. in her honor. "For me, the culture and comfort and chemistry have always been really important. ALL along, however, Mr. Roberts has drawn his son closer to the center of action inside Comcast and pushed him into the spotlight outside the company. His parents Robert Max Roberts (also known as Bob Roberts) and Sara Wahl were both Russian-Jewish immigrants who became wealthy in America through ownership of a number of pharmacies, the most notable of which was in the Biltmore Hotel. ", "He's the same person as my boss that he has been as a dad; he's gracious, never interrupts when you're talking. Roberts was born on March 13, 1920, in New York City. They are not your blood family, but you spend so much time with them, you should treat them like family. He and his wife, the former Suzanne Fleisher, restored it. There was plenty of room to give the son a shot. They were like mass therapy sessions with the children.''. Ralph Joel Roberts was born on March 13, 1920, in New York. Douglass Edward Roberts, 69, a lifelong resident of Swansea and the son of the late Edward Francis Roberts and Barbara (Douglass) Roberts, passed away on December 25, 2019. Their simple philosophy was summed up by Mr. Roberts in an interview with The New York Times in 2007. It also sells those services to businesses. The Roberts family said in a statement: "Ralph was a remarkable man who touched the lives of so many people. RALPH ROBERTS, the dapper 77-year-old founder of the Comcast Corporation, loves to follow the ups and downs of other family businesses and try to figure out what makes some thrive and others implode. It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Douglas A. Roberts of Mount Carmel, Illinois, born in Tampa, Florida, who passed away on May 2, 2021, at the age of 66, leaving to mourn family and friends. ''Barry is very charismatic and hypnotic, but we were not going to lose our business and become a nonvoting stockholder of CBS to provide Barry with an entree to CBS.'' Comcast's decision in late April to abandon its $45 billion deal to buy Time Warner Cable Inc. was a rare misstep for the company and a trimming of its ambitions for the moment. Sign Up Today! He was always a stickler for table manners," she said. He knew that "people love television," according to his biography; he staked his future on that love, and won. A Visitation will be held on Friday, March 3 from 10 am - 12 pm at Drake and Son Funeral Home, 5303 North Western Ave., Chicago, IL 60625. The company is clearly planning for the day that Ralph Roberts will no longer be running the show. But that verve was always tempered by a calm affability and a cautious approach to spending money. Mr. Roberts built Comcast through a series of acquisitions of cable systems around the country. A Visitation will be held on Friday, March 3 from 10 am 12 pm at Drake and Son Funeral Home, 5303 North Western Ave., Chicago, IL 60625. Daughter Lisa said Mr. Roberts was an attentive father. The son of Russian Jewish immigrants, Mr. Roberts witnessed the loss of his family's drugstore chain in the Depression and the death of his father to a heart attack in 1933, when he was 12. The 1990's have been far tougher, as regulation and skepticism about the industry's future in the face of rival technologies hurt cable stocks. Receive obituaries from the city or cities of your choice. He will always be remembered for his generosity, integrity, honesty, kindness and respect for everyone around him. [4] In 1998, the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia inducted Roberts into their Hall of Fame. With over 1,900 locations, Dignity Memorial providers proudly serve over 375,000 families a year. Mr. Roberts has by all accounts done a skillful job of grooming Brian to fill his shoes so that he is both respected by his peers and supported by his siblings. ''It is the same thing as giving birth -- or having another generation. At least Comcast has the financial flexibility to make the transition work. ", Mayor Nutter called Mr. Roberts a "consummate gentleman, kind and gentle husband and father, and a great business leader.". He always treated me with respect from a very young age.". Comcast, the company that the venture became (with Mr. Aaron and Mr. Brodsky as its first two employees), has 27.2 million subscribers and produced $68.8 billion in revenue in 2014, the company said. "It has been a dream come true for him - and for me," Brian Roberts told his father's biographer. And Peter Barton, the former president of Liberty Media, recalled that Brian Roberts played the key role in a complicated deal with Liberty involving the purchase of Time Warner's stake in E Entertainment, a cable-service company, for $321 million. That never happens.". Stone Funeral Home. ''She had a lot of friends, and she decided to go into the insurance business, and everybody she knew bought a policy from her the first year to keep us going,'' he said. Echovita offers a solidarity program that gives back the funds generated to families. But the elder Mr. Roberts has probably come as close as any company founder can to setting the stage for an orderly succession. Roberts is survived by Suzanne Roberts, his wife of over 70 years and an actress, director and host of Seeking Solutions with Suzanne. OBITUARY Douglas McArthur ROBERTS April 10, 1943 - May 16, 2022. ''He gives more speeches than anyone who is asked,'' said one media executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Under Brian Roberts, Comcast has built on its standing as a cable television power to become a media and entertainment giant in content creation and Internet and voice services. Doug was predeceased by his infant. Overnight, it went from 18th to fifth among cable firms in the United States, with two million customers. His father's greatest skill, he said, ''is the ability to make the hard decision at the crucial moment.''. Though his father called Comcast a family business, Brian was the only one of the children to show a serious interest in working with his father. ''It's a pretty close family. Start searching today using our powerful and intuitive search. He helped his wife, an actress, practice her lines and attended every performance no matter how many days the show ran. There is no photo or video of Douglas A. Roberts.Be the first to share a memory to pay tribute. ''Deals like Microsoft and QVC would not have happened without Brian,'' said Steven Rattner, deputy chief executive of Lazard Freres & Company, who has worked with the family for about a decade. He never pressured any of them to join the family company -- and none besides Brian showed any interest in doing so. Mr. Roberts has reason to track the way family-run companies pass the baton from one generation to next. ''We never emphasized that they should make a lot of money, or have the biggest car,'' Mrs. Roberts recalled. "Ralph has been the heart and soul of Comcast for 50 years," said his son, Comcast president and CEO Brian L. Roberts, in a note to employees Friday morning. Blogs; Online will; Shop. 1-800-896-5587 (Mon-Fri, 7am-6pm MDT) Annual Membership . I knew a lot of people at Comcast. Family-business experts say the family is something of an anomaly in devising a smooth transfer between generations. Intrigued by the nascent cable industrys potential and aided by Mr. Aaron and Julian Brodsky, a Philadelphia accountant, Mr. Roberts decided to invest, overcoming his own initial misgivings and the even stronger doubts of his wife, Suzanne, who, he said, thought he was absolutely crazy., The cable business, you put up a tower, you run a line down through the telephone poles, you charge everybody $5 a month, and you dont do anything, so it didnt seem very appealing to me, Mr. Roberts recalled in receiving a television industry award in 2003. Ralph is survived by Suzanne Roberts, his wife of over 70 years. Mr. Roberts has reason to track the way family-run companies pass the baton from one generation to next. The son, meanwhile, remains an understudy of the father -- and the father is impressing upon the son the need to play hardball when the occasion demands it. An actress, director and host of Seeking Solutions with Suzanne, Suzanne has spent a lifetime seeking to help others. That was hardly a coincidence. It purchased for $30 billion controlling interest in the entertainment conglomerate's NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks; pay TV channels such as USA, CNBC, Bravo, and Syfy; the Universal movie studio; and Universal Studios theme parks in Florida and California. Cancel any time, no strings attached. Maybe it was losing both his parents before he was 21, living through the Depression, but somehow he became an optimist. He loved his work and all those who worked with him and for him. It's been a real pleasure for the whole family," he said in 1999. He moved his family to New Rochelle, N.Y., when Ralph was 5. "Ralph Roberts is the absolutely most clear-cut example of the American dream," said former Gov. Even though Brian is the CEO, Ralph set the tone from a business point of view.". For Brodsky that was giving up the four or five packs of unfiltered Pall Mall cigarettes he used to smoke. "When?" Ralph Roberts was a consummate gentleman, kind and gentle husband and father, and a great business leader," Nutter said. The company also has 33 million shares of common stock with one vote each and 284 million K shares with no votes. Mr. Roberts has been married to his wife, Suzanne, for 54 years. Private. [13][14], Roberts made an appearance on TLC's reality series Cake Boss, receiving a cake for his 90th birthday. chief executive, Jeffrey R. Immelt, that the deal would be completed. These early losses, coupled with experiences as a young salesman of golf clubs, men's accessories, cologne, and Muzak, gave Mr. Roberts an ambitious, entrepreneurial spirit. [4] He was awarded honorary degrees from both Holy Family College and the University of Pennsylvania, where he received their Joseph P. Wharton Award. I believe the reason we are still in this business when so many others have long since departed was his will to succeed, and to do it with certain core values and integrity. He managed to get a photograph of Bob Hope holding the club and asked him to endorse it, to help out a veteran, Mr. Roberts recalled, but there was never any formal agreement. "From selling belts door-to-door to creating the largest entertainment and technology corporation in the United States of America - it's an incredible success story. Prepare a personalized obituary for someone you loved.. Throughout his life, Roberts was involved in numerous community and civic activities, serving the boards of the Council of Emeritus Directors of the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Brandywine Museum and Conservancy, among others. Loving father of Dennis Garland, D.J. He has five children, aged 36 to 47. "Ralph was a remarkable man who touched the lives of so many people. Brodsky, the company's longtime finance guru, on Friday described Mr. Roberts as his best friend and a "charismatic, fearless visionary" who gave people the confidence to do things they thought were impossible. As Comcast prospered, so did the Roberts family. Enter People who never had a financial problem in their lives can never understand what terror there is in that.''. The couple celebrated 70 years of marriage in 2012. "During this period, even before 1979 . But they talk all the time. Since I was 12, all I wanted to do was work with my dad, Brian Roberts said in an interview for this obituary. ''Brian is the more active participant.''. "He wanted to keep the integrity, the family feel, and the dedication of employees. When I think of Ralph, it is always with the utmost affection.". Funeral homes; Help and advice. The soft-spoken, affable Mr. Roberts never acquired the outsize public profile of cable pioneers like Ted Turner, John C. Malone, Charles F. Dolan and John Rigas, but his impact was comparable to theirs in making cable television a culture-changing industry giving viewers hundreds of channels, where they once had little more than a dozen, and persuading them to pay for something that had always been free. ''They drag the business down because it kills the morale of everybody in the company.''. The recent deal was begun when the executive committee of Cablelabs, the cable industry's research and development arm that included Brian Roberts and John Malone, chairman of Tele-Communications Inc., the country's largest cable operator, visited Microsoft in late April. Send a note, share a story or upload a photo. Brian, born in 1959, was the fourth. . Penn honored him in 2005 with the Doctor of Laws honoris causa. The potential for conflict is obvious. He came home each weeknight at 7 p.m. and left his briefcase by the door, along with business cares. "His vision was always to create a little IBM," Rudnay said. He was 95. Anyone can read what you share. . Mr. Gates told the group he believed the cable industry had been slow to upgrade its systems. ''Ralph and Julian have been intimately involved, but Ralph doesn't sit there until 4 A.M. in the lawyers' offices anymore. '', See the article in its original context from. A unique . The deal put the cable company on a far larger corporate map. He was an inspiration to us all and we will miss him greatly.". But as Brian Roberts worked his way up the ladder, the halcyon 1980's came to an end. Brian Roberts said his parents tried to make life stimulating and eye-opening for their children. Using the proceeds from Pioneer, he started purchasing local community antenna television systems which brought TV to people in rural areas,[2] which were then underserved by big broadcasters. And by the end of this year, the elder Mr. Roberts will increase Brian's control over the company's special class of 8.8 million shares that represent nearly 82 percent of Comcast's vote. The five children and their parents jointly own the holding company that owns Comcast's supervoting shares. [5] They incorporated in 1969 as Comcast Corporation, a name Roberts invented by combining the words communications and broadcasting. She was not amused. Published. In 1963, Mr. Roberts was a little-known entrepreneur who had sold Muzak systems and mens belts and suspenders, but he was ambitious and always scouting for new business opportunities. Ralph J. Roberts, the man whofounded Comcast Corp. with the purchase of a 1,200-subscriber cable television system in Tupelo, Mississippi in 1963, died Thursday night of natural causes in Philadelphia. In 1942, he married Suzanne Fleisher, an aspiring actress from a well-to-do Philadelphia family. . He credits his mother for pulling the family through hard times. Most recently, Roberts and his wife, Suzanne, received the Philadelphia Award to highlight their lifetime contributions to the city in business, philanthropy, and arts and culture. [2], Roberts has been credited with expanding Comcast into the largest cable television company in the United States. Mr. Roberts allowed himself an indulgence - the purchase of a farm in Chester County. Without being asked, Mrs. Roberts volunteered her opinion that Ralph and Brian clicked as few business partners do. The Gettys or that family in Texas,'' he continued, referring to Harold Simmons, the Texas investor who is at war with his daughters. He had a way of leading and managing that is razor-smart, focused, intuitive, strong, but all with a velvet glove," said chief communications officer D'Arcy Rudnay. Born in Trenton, Doug was a longtime Ewing resident. 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